The three Marines who took down the American flag at the U.S. embassy in 1961 were on hand in Havana once again today, witnessing three much younger Marines raise the flag there for the first time in 54 years, marking the historic reopening of the U.S. embassy in Cuba.

Retired Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant Jim Tracy is one of those Marines.

“I spent 30 years protecting that flag, and if I can put that flag back where it belongs again ... I’ll feel good,” Tracy told ABC News before heading arriving in Havana for the first time since taking down more than half a century ago.
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Retired Lance Corporal Larry Morris, now 74, was the youngest Marine on post at the time. He told the story of how they decided on their own that the flag, which was taken down in a hurry, should be folded in the traditional manner.

“Someone said, ‘we going to fold the flag?’ And somebody said, 'Hell yes!’ So we folded the flag. And smartly, we done it just like it should have been done, and marched up the steps and ... there was about two or three hundred people up the steps and when we folded the flag. They gave us a clap," Morris said.

President Barack Obama will become the first sitting U.S. President to visit Cuba in 88 years, when he visits Havana in March, White House press secretary Josh Earnest announced Thursday.

The visit, which is scheduled for March 21-22, is another big step by the administration in ongoing efforts to normalize diplomatic relations with Cuba.
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"We still have differences with the Cuban government that I will raise directly. America will always stand for human rights around the world," he tweeted. "Next month, I'll travel to Cuba to advance our progress and efforts that can improve the lives of the Cuban people."
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The last sitting U.S. President to visit Cuba was Calvin Coolidge in 1928.
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Speaking at CNN's GOP town hall on Wednesday night, presidential candidate Marco Rubio slammed the announcement.

The Florida senator said that if he were president, he would not visit the island nation -- unless it were a "free Cuba."
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Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, whose father emigrated from Cuba, also disparaged the prospect of a presidential visit.

"I think it's a real mistake. I think the President ought to be pushing for a free Cuba," Cruz said at the same town hall. "My family has seen firsthand the evil and the oppression in Cuba. We need a president who stands up to our enemies."
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Last week, U.S. air carriers entered a bidding war to secure routes to Cuba after both nations signed an agreement to resume flights between the island and the United States.

U.S. travelers, who previously were required to adhere to strict conditions for visits to Cuba, are now able to apply for a broad range of travel licenses, included trips for cultural exchanges and humanitarian work.

But travel purely for tourism won't be allowed until the U.S. Congress lifts a longstanding embargo, which also restricts most trade with Cuba.

Instead, Castro opened a joint news conference with U.S. President Barack Obama with a laundry list of why his country and the United States would never see eye to eye. And he ended it with complaints about taking one more question than was previously agreed.

Castro spoke before Obama for roughly 15 minutes, detailing the technocratic fruits of thawed diplomacy, namely the restoration of postal service and travel between the two countries, and urging the removal of the decades-old trade embargo between the two countries.

"This cooperation is beneficial not only for Cuba and the United States but also for our hemisphere at large," Castro said, referring also to cooperation in dealing with the spread of Zika virus in the region.

The Cuban president touted his country's progress on communications and medication, remarking that "much more could be done if the U.S. blockade were lifted." The steps forward to remove restriction are "positive, but insufficient," Castro said.
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Castro also urged the return of "illegally occupied" Guantanamo Bay, later taking shots at the United States' "political manipulation and double standards" with respect to human rights, as well as its lack of universal health care and other social programs for its citizens.
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“Cuba is sovereign and rightly has great pride, and the future of Cuba will be decided by Cubans, not by anybody else" Obama said. But he vowed to "do as wherever we go around the world" and "speak out on behalf of universal human rights, including freedom of speech and assembly and religion."

Obama said he looked forward to "hearing from Cuban civil society leaders tomorrow."

"But as you heard, President Castro has also addressed as what he views as shortcomings in the United States," he said, "and we welcome that constructive dialogue as well. Because we believe that when we share our deepest beliefs and ideas with an attitude of mutual respect, that we can both learn and make the lives of our people better."

The cruise ship Adonia of the Fathom company, an affiliate of Carnival Corporation, arrived at Havana this Monday to open the first cruise line between the United States and Cuba in more than half a century.

The ship, with 704 passengers aboard including a dozen Cuban-Americans, has sailed into Havana Harbor to dock at the Sierra Maestra cruise ship terminal in the historic center of Havana.
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The program of this cruise that will sail from Miami to Cuba every other week features a program of cultural, educational and humanitarian activities on land and at sea.

Carnival, the world's largest cruise ship company, promises travelers on this maritime route a "cultural immersion" experience on a seven-day trip around the island, with Havana its first port of call, followed by Cienfuegos and Santiago de Cuba. EFE

The self-proclaimed un-carrier has inked a roaming deal with Cuban telecom company Empresa De Telecomunicaciones De Cuba, which will make it more affordable for customers to call Cuba and give access to those traveling there.

T-Mobile Simple Choice customers who add the company's $15 monthly Stateside International Talk feature will be able to call landlines and wireless phones in Cuba from the US for $0.60 per minute — 65 percent less than you'd pay today. The deal also lets T-Mobile users make calls, text, and use data while traveling in Cuba, starting this summer.
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Sprint and Verizon started offering roaming in Cuba last year, but it's not cheap.

The first scheduled commercial passenger flight from the United States to Cuba in more than half a century landed on Wednesday, opening another chapter in the Obama administration's efforts to improve ties and increase trade and travel with the former Cold War foe.

A JetBlue Airways Corp passenger jet arrived from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, in the central Cuban city of Santa Clara. The route may be a commercial challenge, at least initially, but it is the first of a plethora of new flights by various U.S. airlines to destinations on the Communist-ruled island.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, JetBlue Chief Executive Officer Robin Hayes, other officials and journalists were aboard the 150-seat plane. Regular travelers, including some of Cuban descent, occupied nearly half the seats on the flight to Santa Clara, a city with a population of about 200,000 that is known for its monument to revolutionary leader Ernesto "Che" Guevara.

The US State Department is pulling out all families of employees and nonessential personnel from Cuba, after a string of mysterious sonic attacks against US diplomats, according to two US officials.

The American embassy will continue to operate with a 60% reduction in staff. The officials said the US will stop issuing visas in Cuba effective immediately because of the staff reductions and the decision is not described as a retaliatory measure. Officials say there will still be consular officials in the embassy available to assist US citizens in Cuba.

The State Department is also issuing a travel warning, urging Americans not to travel to Cuba because they could also be at risk as some of the attacks against diplomats have taken place at hotels where Americans stay, a senior State Department official told reporters Friday.
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At least 21 US diplomats and family members have been affected by the incidents that began in November, causing a baffling array of maladies from hearing loss to dizziness to concussions.

US officials say there may have been as many as 50 attacks, a senior US official told CNN, the most recent in August. Some victims have had long lasting symptoms and, in at least one case, permanent hearing loss.
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Investigators haven't determined the cause of the incidents, but US officials told CNN they are convinced someone has targeted American diplomats in Havana with a sophisticated device never deployed before, at least not against US personnel.

Canadian diplomats have suffered similar health problems, according to US and Canadian officials.

"The world is suffering more today from the good people who want to mind other men's business than it is from the bad people who are willing to let everybody look after their own individual affairs." - Clarence Darrow

The US State Department is pulling out all families of employees and nonessential personnel from Cuba, after a string of mysterious sonic attacks against US diplomats, according to two US officials.

The American embassy will continue to operate with a 60% reduction in staff. The officials said the US will stop issuing visas in Cuba effective immediately because of the staff reductions and the decision is not described as a retaliatory measure. Officials say there will still be consular officials in the embassy available to assist US citizens in Cuba.

The State Department is also issuing a travel warning, urging Americans not to travel to Cuba because they could also be at risk as some of the attacks against diplomats have taken place at hotels where Americans stay, a senior State Department official told reporters Friday.
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At least 21 US diplomats and family members have been affected by the incidents that began in November, causing a baffling array of maladies from hearing loss to dizziness to concussions.

US officials say there may have been as many as 50 attacks, a senior US official told CNN, the most recent in August. Some victims have had long lasting symptoms and, in at least one case, permanent hearing loss.
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Investigators haven't determined the cause of the incidents, but US officials told CNN they are convinced someone has targeted American diplomats in Havana with a sophisticated device never deployed before, at least not against US personnel.

Canadian diplomats have suffered similar health problems, according to US and Canadian officials.

I’m the part of a delegation to Cuba in two weeks. I’m concerned, but not alarmed, by this. The Canadians have had similar incidents, but are not advising against travel. If this Administration hadn’t pledged to undermine the detente with Cuba, it’d be easier to take their concerns seriously. Lots of contradictions between the reports from USDOS and the Canadian Foreign Ministry.

Wed Oct 20, 2004 1:17 am
Zarathud: The sad thing is that Barak Obama is a very intelligent and articulate person, even when you disagree with his views it's clear that he's very thoughtful. I would have loved to see Obama in a real debate.
Me: Wait 12 years, when he runs for president. :-)

The Canadian government pulled families of diplomats from its embassy in Cuba on April 16, 2018 after 10 Canadians reported symptoms similar to those afflicting Americans on the island. In 2017, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson alleged that a “targeted attack” sickened 24 people at the U.S. embassy — recently downgraded to an “unaccompanied post” with reduced personnel.

The symptoms had psychological and physical effects. Workers and their family members experienced difficulty concentrating. They became dizzy, experienced blurred vision, and suffered headaches and hearing loss. Some workers occasionally reported hearing a high-pitched whining sound, although it’s unclear if that was a side-effect of other symptoms.

In combination, it was enough to touch off months of speculation that someone — perhaps the Cuban government or an ally — had aimed a sonic weapon at the American and Canadian diplomatic compounds.
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Cuba has denied involvement. “Cuba has never permitted, nor will permit, that Cuban territory be used for any action against accredited diplomatic officials or their families, with no exception,” the Cuban government stated in August 2017.
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The purported attacks at the U.S. and Canadian diplomatic compounds in Cuba might be somewhere in the middle — and may not be a weapon at all. One possibility is that Cuban intelligence, or an intelligence agency with a close relationship with Cuba, is beaming microwaves at the buildings to power very small electronic eavesdropping devices implanted inside.

Canada has confirmed a 14th case of unusual health symptoms experienced by some Canadian diplomatic staff and their family members posted in Havana, Cuba, according to a government statement Wednesday.

The country has also decided to reduce by up to half the number of Canadian employees posted to Havana.
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The statement said that after the last confirmed case of unusual health symptoms in November 2018, a number of Canadian diplomatic staff in Cuba underwent additional medical testing.

"These tests confirm that an additional employee has symptoms consistent with those of previously affected employees. This brings the total number of affected Canadian employees, spouses and dependents to 14. All affected people will continue to receive medical attention, as required."
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According to a study published in the medical journal JAMA in March 2018, a majority of 21 affected patients reported problems with memory, concentration, balance, eyesight, hearing, sleeping or headaches that lasted more than three months. Three people eventually needed hearing aids for moderate to severe hearing loss, and others had ringing or pressure in their ears.

In early January, a British and an American scientist released research theorizing that the sound stemmed from noises made by the Indies short-tailed cricket. The research has not been peer-reviewed.

The White House is tightening a decades-old embargo on Cuba, but delaying a decision for another month that could put foreign companies invested on the island in legal jeopardy.

Title III of the 1996 Helms-Burton Act would let Americans — including Cubans who have since become U.S. citizens — to sue companies that "traffic" in property confiscated by Cuba after the country's 1959 Communist revolution.

For now, the Trump administration is only allowing lawsuits against Cuban companies that are already blacklisted in the U.S. because they are tied to Cuba's military and intelligence services. Foreign companies, however, are on edge, since Pompeo's waiver only runs through April 17.

"Today I announce an exception to the 30-day suspension of #TitleIII of the Libertad Act," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo wrote on Twitter, adding, "We must hold #Cuba accountable and make whole U.S. claimants for assets seized by the Cuban government. Doing business with Cuba is not worth trafficking in confiscated property."

Until now, Title III has been suspended on a rolling basis every six months, but the administration last issued a 45-day waiver, which expires on March 19.

The Trump administration is reimposing limits on the amount of money Cuban Americans can send to relatives on the island and ordering new restrictions on U.S. citizen, nonfamily travel to Cuba, national security adviser John Bolton said Wednesday.

The new measures, outlined by Bolton in a Miami speech, follow an announcement by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that the administration will lift restraints that have prevented lawsuits from U.S. citizens seeking compensation for property expropriated by the Cuban revolutionary government that seized power there six decades ago.

Bolton also announced new sanctions against Venezuela and Nicaragua that will bar parts of their banking systems from U.S. dollar transactions.

The actions are the latest move in President Trump’s efforts to roll back the Obama administration’s openings to Havana, and to punish Cuba for its support for the Venezuelan government of President Nicolás Maduro.
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In a fiery speech to the Bay of Pigs veterans group, on the anniversary of the failed CIA-orchestrated invasion of the island in 1961, Bolton said, “Today, we proudly proclaim for all to hear: the Monroe Doctrine is alive and well.” The 1823 doctrine holds that the United States will not tolerate foreign intrusions anywhere in the Western Hemisphere.

"If the facts don't fit the theory, change the facts." - Albert Einstein"When the president does it, that means that it is not illegal. - Nixon"I don't stand by anything." - Trump“Bad men need nothing more to compass their ends, than that good men should look on and do nothing.” - John Stuart Mill, Inaugural Address Delivered to the University of St Andrews, 2/1/1867

The Trump administration has announced new steps to further restrict Americans' travel to Cuba, including banning group tours and cruise ship stops to the island nation.

The changes are meant to tighten the economic pressure on the Cuban government, which Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross called "one of our historically most aggressive adversaries." The goal is to "restrict non-family travel to Cuba in order to hold the Cuban regime accountable for its repression of the Cuban people and its support of the Maduro regime in Venezuela," his agency said in a statement.

"Veiled tourism has served to line the pockets of the Cuban military, the very same people supporting Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela and repressing the Cuban people on the island," the State Department added in a statement.
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For Americans who have already booked a flight or hotel or made another "travel-related transaction," they will be "grandfathered" in, according to the Treasury Department. Eleven other categories of travel are still permitted, including other cultural exchanges, like by university groups, along with travel to see family members or for humanitarian projects, religious activities, public performances, journalism, or official U.S. government business.